


Cross My hEart

by BrassicaOracle



Series: Spaceboy in Black Space [3]
Category: OMORI (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Horror, Parental Fear, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:28:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29880444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrassicaOracle/pseuds/BrassicaOracle
Summary: Capt. Pinkbeard’s son had gone missing, twice.
Relationships: Captain Spaceboy/Sweetheart (OMORI)
Series: Spaceboy in Black Space [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2169855
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	Cross My hEart

**Author's Note:**

> This fic takes place the same time with the previous two works in "Spaceboy in Black Space" series.  
> This is Pinkbeard's POV of the events.

Although he had handed most of his crew and assets to his son, Capt. Pinkbeard was still far from retiring. He and his closest crew got themselves another ship and flew around doing their own business, consisting of mostly picking fights and catching new planets.

His son _(sons?)_ contacted him from time to time, reporting his recent adventures. So far he was doing well.

Pinkbeard had some concerns about his son’s ability as a Space Pirate Captain. While Spaceboy was excelling in pilot and combat fields, and he certainly had the charisma, his on-field leadership skill still had a long way to go.

More importantly, he was too soft.

 _For Southern Cross’ sake, you are the Captain of SPACE PIRATES! Why are you being so affable and soft-spoken?!_

It wasn’t always the case, though. Spaceboy had another side of him that was appropriately aggressive. No one was sure where this alter-ego came from. All they knew was that he showed up when Spaceboy was experiencing strong emotions.

Ever since he accepted the role of Captain, cases of Spaceboy’s personality shift were growing more frequent. Pinkbeard couldn’t tell if that was because he was getting more used to controlling his emotions or the opposite.

Pinkbeard had received calls from both of Spaceboy’s personalities before. Those talks were pleasant in general, both of them were treating him like a father. In a way it was like he had a pair of twins as children instead of just one.

Thinking of Spaceboy, a calling screen from Mercury Retrograde popped up before Pinkbeard. He picked up the call in a good mood, expecting his son’s greeting.

He expected wrong. A group of frantic Space Pirate crew showed up on screen. “Capt. Pinkbeard! We are in dire need of your assistance!” one of them said.

“What is it? And where the hell is my son!” Pinkbeard responded. He glanced at the background to evaluate the situation. Behind the caller, several other pirates were busy working around the controls. The alarm wasn’t ringing, nor was the video feed corrupted, suggesting that the issue wasn’t on the ship. However the absence of the Captain was worrying. Without their leader, his crew was running around like headless chickens.

The older crewmen looked at each other uneasily. None of them wanted to be the one to break the news. Spaceboy was only scary when angry, Pinkbeard on the other hand was terrifyingly imposing all the time.

One of the bird men was pushed forward before Pinkbeard ran out of patience. “We lost Capt. Spaceboy, sir-”

“YOU WHAT?!” Pinkbeard’s voice boomed in both his and his son’s ships.

* * *

Spaceboy’s crew explained the situation. Basically Spaceboy went through some kind of wormhole to free Mercury Retrograde from it, and was trapped on the other side. The crews were trying to contact him, to no avail.

 _Why didn’t he tie a safety rope on him!_ Pinkbeard pointed out the glaring mistake in his head. Spaceboy was still inexperienced, and could make this kind of rookie mistake.

“Change the setting to searching mode!” Pinkbeard commanded his crew. “We are not stopping until we find my son!”

The crews on both sides were unable to read the residual data from the mysterious wormhole, all it pumped out was some garbled data. They were forced to use the more time-consuming blanket search method. They flew around places they were familiar with, while blasting their radar with maximum searching capacity.

It took them almost a day before the radar on Pinkbeard’s ship picked up Spaceboy’s signal on Otherworld. Space Pirate Chief contacted Spaceboy’s crew about their finding while Pinkbeard went on to pick his son up by himself.

The radar showed that Spaceboy was in Cattail Field, nobody else was in the surrounding area. It didn’t seem dangerous, but Pinkbeard brought his laser shotgun with him just in case.

Pinkbeard walked in the dirt trail. He visited here before. The plants were growing denser than before, causing a sense of isolation. It was eerily quiet too. This place should be one of the sightseeing spots on Otherworld, yet it felt deserted for a long time.

At the end of the road was a farmhouse. It looked abandoned as well, dust and spider webs covered the place. Faint red light shined through the window and door gap, it dimmed down when Pinkbeard came closer. Somewhat hidden behind the fences was a familiar humanoid figure.

“Son! There you are!” Pinkbeard speedwalked to Spaceboy’s side. He was laying on the ground face down, looking very ragged, but nothing too serious. “Gettin’ roughed up by some enemy goons huh? Gotta taste those defeats before you grow up stronger!” he poked fun to his son, trying to lighten up the mood.

There was no response. Pinkbeard sighed, Spaceboy must be tired. He crouched down, his son needed to rest somewhere safer. “Come on, let’s go.” He grabbed Spaceboy’s arm.

It was cold, deadly cold.

“...!” Pinkbeard quickly flipped Spaceboy’s body over. All the overlooked injuries were then fully exposed.

Tiny red rope burns and claw marks overlaid on top of purple and black bruises, crawled across Spaceboy’s neck. So was his left hand fingers, stained red when he tried to pry his neck free.

A gaping stab wound on his left chest was slowly oozing blood and some sort of black liquid. It was flowing out very slowly, either the cut didn’t reach any big arteries, or he was bled dry already.

“SON!” Pinkbeard stared wide, hands grabbed tightly on his son’s unconscious body. _He’s just fainted! Some enemy crooks knocked him out cold and that’s all! They wouldn’t- My son isn’t-!_

It wasn’t that Pinkbeard had no knowledge of first-aid. However, when the critically injured was his son, all good judgments were out of the window. All he could see was Spaceboy’s pale face, troubled by the pain. He couldn’t even tell if Spaceboy was breathing!

“Don’t worry, son! We are going to patch you up, and you will be fine!” Pinkbeard muttered as he picked up Spaceboy’s body. His body lay limp in Pinkbeard’s arms. _He is still alive, he is still alive! Dead bodies harden so he is still alive!_ The body felt very small and light. Spaceboy might have grown taller these years, but he was as defenceless as a child at this moment.

Pinkbeard carried Spaceboy’s body and ran all the way back to the spaceship. HIs heart was racing not because of fatigue, but the kind of fear that only a parent could experience.

* * *

The waiting outside of the medical bay felt like eternity. Finally the ship medic, Space Pirate Pal, called Pinkbeard in.

Spaceboy was sleeping in one of the beds, with some machines attached to him. The stab wound was sewn shut and covered with clean bandages. The colour of his skin was one shade healthier than before, and he was breathing steadily. _Thanks the stars he is breathing._

Pinkbeard was going to shake Spaceboy up, but Pal grabbed his hands to stop him. “Capt. Pinkbeard! You must not disturb the patient!” he said. When the medic met the Captain’s glaring eye, he apologized and stepped back.

“Is he going to wake up?” Pinkbeard asked. It took all his willpower not to lash out again. His son’s body was alive, but what about his mind?

Pal flipped through his clipboard. It was less like he was checking on the results (E1 V4 M6 at the moment), but a nervous gesture. “Well, about that… I mean, his status is improving, but...” He swallowed his spit, “I can’t give you a concrete answer, Captain.” Pal winced, waiting for Pinkbeard to have another worry-anger outburst. Something else happened before it. 

“...” Spaceboy’s lips trembled. He made no sound, but the motion didn’t escape the other’s eyes.

“Son!” Pinkbeard grabbed Spaceboy’s shoulder, knocking Pal over in the process. He leaned down and listened closely, not going to miss his son’s words this time.

Spaceboy spoke again. His voice was very faint, almost blended with his breath. “I’m… sorry...”

“What? Why are you apologizing?” Pinkbeard asked, still listening close.

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry…” Spaceboy repeated it again and again. He was not apologizing, more like citing a mantra.

Pinkbeard lifted his head with confusion, then he noticed another strange thing in Spaceboy’s body. Specifically, his eyes.

Spaceboy, who was supposed to be unconscious still, opened his eyes wide. However he wasn’t looking at anything, they just blankly faced the ceiling. It was not all, the colour of his right eye was off too. His left iris was still its usual dark pink, but his right had turned much, much darker. His right sclera did the opposite. It looked like a tiny black hole in the middle of a blank white space.

“What is that?” Pinkbeard asked. Since his huge form blocked the path, Pal had difficulty doing examinations. When he finally walked around the Captain, Spaceboy’s eyes were closed again.

Pal did a quick check on Spaceboy’s eyes. They returned back to normal again, he couldn’t find anything wrong about them. He nervously looked between his clipboard, Spaceboy, and Pinkbeard. Gathering his thoughts and courage for discussion, he finally addressed the strangest issue. “Capt. Pinkbeard, there is something else I’m concerning. It’s about his chest wound.”

He flipped through the clipboard pages and showed Pinkbeard some notes. “The cuts went all the way into his heart, and uh...” He scratched his own chest idly, still unable to process the finding himself. “It is not beating anymore?”

Pinkbeard yanked Pal by the clothes. “Explain,” he growled.

“I, I really don’t know!” Pal trembled in the captain’s grip. “It’s not scientific by any sense! Yet, yet there he is, all the vitals except for his heartbeat are improving!”

“And what are you going to do with it?”

Pal looked at the bed. “For now I really can’t do anything about it other than keeping an eye on it.”

* * *

Over the week, Spaceboy’s physical condition was slowly improving. However he was yet to wake up. Pal kept telling Pinkbeard that everything will be okay, but these words sounded like nothing but empty promises.

The world kept no mind to those who stayed stationary and moved forward by itself. Another emergency arose in Pinkbeard’s domain that required him to show up in person. It wouldn’t take long to resolve the issue in theory, but chances were a fight would break out.

Keeping the unconscious Spaceboy on board was certainly a liability. So many things could go wrong if someone sneaked into the ship. Pinkbeard contacted Spaceboy’s crew and transferred both his son and the medic to a safer place.

Spaceboy’s crew parked Pinkbeard’s old ship, which was remodeled into a mobile house, at Otherworld Campsite. It should be good enough.

“Be sure to take good care of my son,” Pinkbeard ordered Pal before he left, “or else.”

As expected, Pinkbeard and his crew got into a fight with a comet. The fight didn’t last long, and the Captain didn’t enjoy it like he usually did. He just wanted to finish it and go back to his son’s side.

When Pinkbeard returned to Otherworld, he saw Pal was standing around outside the old ship slacking off. “Ah, sir-”

“What the hell! Why are you loitering around not doing your job!” Pinkbeard stormed to where Pal was standing. The medic nervously took a few steps back.

“I, I was meant to tell you that Capt. Spaceboy has awakened while you are away.” Pal stood sharpy while doing the report. “However, he is not happy and kicked us out.”

Why did something this important happen when I was away? “I’ll deal with him,” Pinkbeard said and walked into the ship. Pinkbeard was used to deal with Spaceboy’s tantrums, he thought this one would be the same. Pal was saying something to him, but he didn’t notice.

This was the first time Pinkbeard visited this old ship after handing it to Spaceboy. Like what he reported, he had redecorated it thoroughly. The once mighty battleship had transformed into a house for living.

On the walls were many shelves that were not here before, souvenirs from other planets lined up on them. Some of the shelves were cleaned out, however, with its contents stored in cardboard boxes.

Almost every corner had a house plant in it. Pinkbeard never understood the appeal. That kind of plant was the most ordinary kind, he couldn’t think of anything special about it.

Spaceboy’s room was on the second floor. Pinkbeard climbed up the lengthy staircase, _was it always this long?_

Spaceboy was alone in his room, standing in front of a vanity. Like the medic suggested, it was his more aggressive alter-ego.

“Son!” Pinkbeard’s loud voice startled Spaceboy, who seemed to be deep in thought. He turned around, his hand covering his right side of face.

“Dad! Ah...” Whatever Spaceboy meant to say was trailed off by the hug his father gave him. It took him a moment to let his emotions catch up, then the tears built up in his left eye. He buried his face in Pinkbeard’s chest and hugged him back with his left hand.

They sobbed in each other’s embrace. Normally neither of them would openly show their affection openly, but Spaceboy just went back from a near-death experience, all the awkwardness be damned.

After a while Pinkbeard finally released his son. “You are scaring your old man to death you know?!” Spaceboy looked down apologetically. Pinkbeard noticed that Spaceboy was still covering his right eye. “And what happened to your eye!”

Spaceboy swallowed. “It’s nothing,” he blatantly lied. The expression on his face was more defensive. His left eye darted around, looking for an opening to run, but he was cornered by his father.

“Nonsense!” Pinkbeard yelled. Even without Spaceboy lying, he had seen his son’s right eye being weird before. Pinkbeard reached out a hand, trying to pry Spaceboy’s hand away from his face.

The alter-ego decided to hide behind the only shield he had. His left eye suddenly rolled over as his personality disconnected. For a second, his whole body lost his strength and almost collapsed.

Pinkbeard quickly grabbed Spaceboy’s arm to stop him from falling over. However, it wasn’t necessary, his body reflexively balanced itself before Pinkbeard even touched him.

The darkness and deformation slid back into his right eye while it was still covered. Spaceboy with pink hair looked at his father with his dark pink eyes. “Huh? What? Oh, hi Dad-”

“Son! What was that about!” Pinkbeard was demanding answers when Spaceboy was also confused about the situation.

“What? What did I do?” The two personalities didn’t share memories, so he had no idea what his alter-ego did. Though judging from his father’s reaction, it was probably not a good thing.

When Spaceboy learned that his alter-ego was acting stranger than usual, he was as concerned as Pinkbeard. “I’m sorry. I-” He stopped for a brief moment when he noticed Pinkbeard tensed up to the sentence. “I’ll let you know what happened one day.”

“Look, just promise me that you won’t go missing again!” Pinkbeard said. Once was hard enough for him, he couldn’t bear to see it happen again.

“...” Spaceboy didn’t respond. He grimaced, hesitating about something.

“Son, promise me,” Pinkbeard said again, putting more weight in his words.

Spaceboy placed a hand on his chest. “Cross my heart,” he said.

His heart remained still.

* * *

The medic performed another check up on Spaceboy. Despite his heart ceasing to function, it didn’t hinder anything else. His right eye was also fine when he was in his cooperative normal state. The green hair alter-ego, for some reason, would do anything to stop anyone from perceiving that eye.

Other than these, Spaceboy was in good health. Things seemingly returned to normal. Spaceboy returned to his regular traveling routines on Mercury Retrograde, and Pinkbeard was back on his own business as well.

One day, Spaceboy looked particularly giddy in his call with Pinkbeard. “Good news, Dad!” Tinges of pink peeked out of his cyan skin, making it almost the same shade of his hair. “I found the love of my life!”

“Romance, huh? Back in the days, your old man had been on many dates!” Pinkbeard went on a tangent about how he met various past lovers, until he settled down with Spaceboy’s mother, his late wife.

Spaceboy had heard these tales for so many times, his father liked to talk about his life experiences, and he just let the man talk without paying much attention. When Pinkbeard finally finished, he continued the topic of his girlfriend.

“I want to spend the rest of my life with my dearest Sweetheart.” Spaceboy put a photo of an obnoxious looking person on the calling screen. “Sweetheart also gave me this brilliant idea. Since I’m now a boyfriend, she suggested that I change my name into Space Boyfriend!”

“What?! No! You are not doing that!” Pinkbeard jabbed his finger on the screen. “There are valid reasons for changing your names, and your relationship status isn’t one of them!”

“But Dad, I love her, and I will be dedicated!” Space Boyfriend pleaded. “How about this, I will arrange a meeting between us and Sweetheart. Maybe this can change your mind?”

Pinkbeard begrudgingly agreed, this meeting better be worth it.

* * *

“I can’t believe you said that!” Spaceboy shouted.

Several Space Pirate poked their heads out of Mercury Retrograde to see what happened. When they saw the hot-headed father and son duo were arguing outside, they decided they didn’t want to get involved and sneaked back into the ship.

They were in the parking lot of Mustard Sub. The meeting was a total disaster. Pinkbeard disliked Sweetheart and didn’t bother to hide it.

It started off with Sweetheart complaining that the waitress was too slow, then she made an extremely complicated order. Followed by Pinkbeard had issues with Sweetheart’s diet, which turned into a shouting match. It almost escalated into a fistfight, but Space Boyfriend flipped out and stopped them both. Sweetheart said this meeting was a waste of time and stormed off.

“Boy, I’m saying this for your own good! Dating this Sweetheart girl is a mistake!” Pinkbeard stood his ground.

Space Boyfriend threw his arms in the air. “What do you know! You barely know her!”

“Bah! I have seen enough!” Pinkbeard was a Space Pirate Captain way before Space Boyfriend was born. He had seen his fair share of scoundrels, and Sweetheart had ticked off so many red flags in just one meeting!

“You are too good for her!” Pinkbeard pointed a finger at Space Boyfriend, “Break it up before she does you dirty!”

Space Boyfriend slapped the hand away. “No Dad, YOU are the one doing me dirty RIGHT NOW!” His face twisted in anger, and hot tears were rolling in his left eye. He turned around, stumped into his ship and flew off.

One of Pinkbeard’s crewman approached. “Let him be, kids need to trip and fall sometimes to see their own mistakes,” he said, offering his own experience.

“Fine, I’ll wait.”

* * *

It wasn’t long until Pinkbeard received a call from Space Boyfriend’s crew saying he was sulking in his bed all day because of a breakup.

Pinkbeard sighed. “That birdbrain always has something in his mind...” muttered the bird man. _Time for me to talk some sense into him_ , he thought as he scheduled another visit.

The old ship never left Otherworld. Several Space Pirates greeted the old Captain. He paid them no mind and headed straight into Space Boyfriend’s room.

Nobody was in the room. There were signs of battle littered everywhere.

“Where is my son?” Pinkbeard grabbed one of the crewmen, concerned.

“You just missed him, Capt. Pinkbeard. Four little bros woke him up, they had a fight, then Sweetheart came to pick him up,” he said.

Pinkbeard clicked his tongue. This boy had a break up, sulked in bed for days, and the moment Sweetheart showed up, he followed her around like a cockatoo! He really did see the world with those rose-coloured iris!

He decided to wait here for Space Boyfriend to come back. This behavior was not good for him and Pinkbeard was going to give him a piece of his mind.

While waiting, Pinkbeard looked around Space Boyfriend’s room. It was really messy. One of his pillows was soaking wet, and there were laser bullet marks everywhere. “This boy...” Pinkbeard shook his head and ordered the Space Pirate to tidy it up.

Pinkbeard noticed an envelope on the coffee table. “Hand it to Capt. Pinkbeard if I go missing again” was written on it. It was signed by two people, no, _two of the same person_. “Spaceboy aka Space Boyfriend“ and “SBF”.

He tore the envelope open and unfolded the letter. As he read through the writing from both sides of his son, his eye glared wide, the paper wrinkled under his grip. He couldn’t just sit here and wait!

Shoving the crumpled letter in his pocket, Pinkbeard rushed out of the old ship and headed to Sweetheart’s castle.

* * *

> _Dear Father:_
> 
> _If you are reading this, I’m afraid that I've once again disappeared from the face of Headspace._
> 
> Or you just happened to find this letter and read it immediately. I know you are, Dad!
> 
> _I’m sorry for breaking the promise._

Apparently the main entrance of Sweetheart’s castle was underground in Sprout Mole Village. Pinkbeard didn’t care why it was built this way. His only thought about it was that it was damn inconvenient for someone tall like him. The two crewmen he brought with him didn’t have the problem though.

“Wait, you weird Sprout Moles with beaks! You can’t attend Sweetheart’s big event without tickets!” The Sprout Mole at the ticket stand yelled at the Space Pirates. The castle entrance was right ahead. None of them paid the ticket stand any attention and moved forward.

> _As the apology, let me tell you what happened to me last time I vanished. You deserve an explanation._
> 
> _I believe my crew already told you that I passed through a fissure in space. That fissure was the entrance of a place I call the Black Hole. Like the Deep Pit in Sprout Mole Village and the Abyss in Deep Well, they are another realm connected to the one we are in._
> 
> I learned a lot there. Forbidden knowledges that I cannot share, not even in this confession. I can’t risk you suffering the same fate as me.

The entrance of Sweetheart’s castle was very extravagant and out-of-place. A gate the size of Sweetheart’s ego came to their sight when they climbed up the ladder.

From here they could hear Sprout Mole choir coming out of it. It was a melody that everyone knew, the fucking wedding song! _Didn’t the ticket seller say it was for Sweetheart’s big event?_ _Oh no you don’t!_

“I OBJECT!” Pinkbeard roared as he swiftly kicked the gate open. “You are not marrying my son!”

The music ground to a halt. Everyone in the hall was staring at Pinkbeard. That included Sweetheart in a wedding dress, countless Sprout Moles, and four human children in the front row.

Space Boyfriend was nowhere to be seen.

> _I managed to return for the time being, however I have a feeling that it won’t last for long. One day it will pull me back and I’ll be gone forever._
> 
> I can still see it looming over me.

“What a turn of event!” the Sprout Mole at the host stand shouted. “It seems like someone else is trying to steal Sweetheart’s heart at the last moment!” The lights were then focused on Sweetheart and Pinkbeard.

Sweetheart was confused for a second. “Huh? Who let an unkempt flamingo in?” she asked, then she remembered something and laughed in her shrieking voice. “OHOHOHO! Would you look at that, it’s the daddy dearest of that Captain Loser. Don’t bother! Your chance of getting me is lower than zero!”

“Where, is, my, son?” Pinkbeard whipped out his big old laser shotgun.

Seeing her teasing was completely ignored, even by an ugly bird man, angered Sweetheart. “So you're just gonna crush into _my_ wedding, make a fool out of _me_ , and ignore _me_ like that?!” she shouted. _Wrong answer._

“Eep!” Sweetheart jumped to the side, just quick enough to dodge the laser fired at her. A burnt smell of silk and plastic rose from her ruined wedding dress.

> _Past memories and emotions are what keep me grounded when I first come back. You and my crew are always by my side and I am eternally grateful for it._
> 
> Those happy and colorful moments covered the gritty darkness of Black Hole. ~~Dreamer is also desperately~~ I am doing everything I can to keep it under control.

“So it’s on… Guards!” Sweetheart commanded, waving her arm.

Armoured Sprout Moles jumped out of the decorations, ready to fight. The Space Pirates raised their laser guns in return. The bride tossed her dress aside in a dramatic fashion, revealing her usual attire and her heart frail. “The dungeon is too good for you peons! I’ll end your lifes right here!”

Sweetheart jumped down the stage, she dashed on the red carpet. A frail is a middle-range weapon, and a gun is long-range. If she could draw in the distance, she would win!

The spiked heart flew, like a flying kiss of death! “Die, you dumpster pidgeon!” Sweetheart said with a slasher smile.

Yes, the distance decided the winner. So Pinkbeard came _closer_. The frail missed the spot, only grazed his shoulder.

He jabbed his shotgun forward. Sweetheart threw her body to her right. This was exactly what Pinkbeard anticipated. He twisted his arm, the gun barrel turned into a stick. It locked Sweetheart in Pinkbeard’s arms.

They spun counterclockwise like a pair of dancers, except it was filled with gunpowder and blades! Pinkbeard threw Sweetheart out of his arms. He was no dancer, he didn’t have to catch his partner!

Sprout Mole guards were fighting to a standstill with the Space Pirate crewmen. A few of them decided that Pinkbeard is the bigger threat and went for him.

The guards charged in a group. Suddenly Sweetheart came to them rolling! Her body hit on them, knocking them over like bowling pins.

The innocent Sprout Moles attendants screamed and ran aimlessly amongst the chaos, many of them got caught in the crossfire. The human kids eventually jumped in. They were on neither one’s side. They were trying to stop Pinkbeard and Sweetheart from killing each other.

When the dust finally settled down, everyone surrounded Sweetheart.She was sitting on the floor, thoroughly defeated. Pinkbeard pointed his gun at her, but not pulled the trigger.

“Lead us to my son. No funny business.” His tone was cold as an angry snow angel.

> _The borrowed days I am living in are also important to me. I am seeing everything around me in a new light. To live a life, to experience the sweet taste of romance, and the other little things. Even though not everything is peaceful, I found these turmoils also enjoyable._
> 
> _I will miss you when I am gone._

Sweetheart begrudgingly led the Space Pirates and the human kids to the dungeon. To think this woman locked his son away for something so petty made him want to rip this donut in half.

“Spacey darling~ You can come out now, your dad is picking you up!” Sweetheart called out Space Boyfriend as if he was still a teenage daddy’s boy. She took out a remote and unlocked the cell with it.

The cell was emptied of its prisoner.

There were no signs of struggle, other than a knocked-over telescope.

“Where is he,” Pinkbeard’s voice was unnaturally quiet. What was written in his son’s letter crept up in his mind.

Sweetheart shrugged. “What would I know? He could have escaped for all I c- AHH!” Her body slammed hard on the bookshelf. The books fell off and buried her in. A giant hand pulled her out, and pinned her on the wall like a butterfly sample.

“You lost him,” Pinbeard said, adding stress on his arm.

Sweetheart was squirming, Pinkbeard’s arm was crashing her ribs with the strength of a jack.

“My son… My only child… is GONE!” Tears were flowing out of Pinkbeard’s glaring eye. “And it is all YOUR FAULT!”

“I didn’t mean it!” Sweetheart’s eyes were also watering up. Was it because of guilt, fear, or just physical pain? It was not important, it would not change a thing.

He could never see his son again, Pinkbeard knew it.

> _Please let me remind you again that my disappearance is not your fault. Nobody is. Sometimes misfortunes happen and we can do nothing about it._
> 
> _Finally, to you, my crew, and my beloved Sweetheart…_

* * *

Omori watched Pinkbeard lashing out on Sweetheart. He was the only one who knew what happened to Spaceboy, or, at least, the one in this loop. His friends were trying to stop Pinkbeard, they were all confused and scared.

Something slowly engulfed the room. The telescope was taped shut so that it could not be used for observing the truth, yet it leaked through. It crept through the floor, climbed the wall, and dangled from the ceiling.

Countless eyes opened in the rippling darkness. Omori closed his. The sound of argument and fighting were muffled, then drowned out.

When Omori opened his eyes again, the cell room changed.

Pictures frames, big and small, lined the walls. The pictures depicted a happy family, but everyone’s faces were scribbled out. Ceiling fans soundlessly spun, casting a wobbling shadow over a photo album on the floor.

A special hell.

He was not alone here.

A Stranger shrouded in shadow looked at Omori with his glowing eyes. He leaned down, picked up a photo from the album and handed it to Omori.

The photo was Omori, Aubrey, Kel, and Hero in front of a long ladder ~~into the treehouse~~ somewhere high up. Mari’s handwriting was in the blank space, it said:

“I love you all.”

> _I love you all._
> 
> I love you all.


End file.
